Good old bamboo to bolster VNIT’s UG Architecture syllabus
   Date :11-Oct-2020

Bamboo Research and Train
A bamboo structure at Bamboo Research and Training Centre at Chichpalli. (File picture)
 
By Kartik Lokhande :
 
Becomes first NIT in the country to do so
 
 
Now, the students of Architecture will get to learn about Bamboo Materials and Technologies in their syllabus. Visvesvaraya National Institute of Technology (VNIT) has become the first National Institute of Technology in the country to include bamboo materials and related technologies in Under-Graduate (UG) course of Architecture. Prof P M Padole, Director of VNIT, issued a letter confirming this on October 8. In the letter addressed to Sunil Joshi, an architect and alumni of VNIT as well as Chairman of Bamboo Society of India’s Maharashtra Chapter, Prof Padole stated that Architecture and Planning Department of VNIT had agreed to float two electives related to Bamboo Materials and Technologies in Fourth and Eighth Semesters. The syllabi of some of the core subjects of Architecture and Planning Department also include bamboo related topics.
 

Architects transformed th Architects transformed thousands of bamboo canes into a
restaurant in Kon Tum, Vietnam. (File photo)
 
 
 
For instance, the Third Semester syllabus has bamboo related topics in Green Materials section in Advance Building Material (Elective) subject. In Fifth Semester, the topic is included in Materials and Techniques of Construction-V (Temporary Structure). Bamboo finds mention in light weight construction system in Construction-VI (Long-Span Structure) subject of Sixth Semester. Seventh Semester has discussion on use of bamboo as building material in Appropriate Technology (Elective). Now, with the latest decision, Bamboo Materials and Related Technologies has been included in Fourth and Eight Semesters in Architecture and Planning Department of VNIT.
 
Prof Padole has also called for involvement of Bamboo Society of India in providing expertise in the area and also helping VNIT set up some laboratories in the area of Bamboo Technology. Sunil Joshi, who is also Vice-Chairman of Bamboo Society of India, told ‘The Hitavada’ that for the first time, any National Institute of Technology was introducing Bamboo Technology in Architecture curriculum in India. “We are happy that Bamboo Society of India-Maharashtra Chapter has been entrusted with the responsibility of shaping it up,” he said. According to Joshi, Architecture students are generally taught about concrete, steel, etc., but not about traditional building material. With the step taken by VNIT, they will get to learn about bamboo as a building material. Centre and State Governments have taken initiatives to promote bamboo. But, Joshi rued, Centre’s vision was falling short on some points like need for training human resource to promote the cause of bamboo.
 
“There has to be a curriculum, which we have prepared. Student will gain knowledge of Bamboo, and its utility,” he added. Architecture and Planning Department of VNIT (erstwhile VRCE) was established by Madhya Pradesh Government in 1947. In 1960, Diploma course in Architecture was converted into full-time degree course. At present, the department offers UG course in Architecture and Post-Graduate course in Urban Planning. The department has other areas like urban sustainability, urban infrastructure, etc. It has developed technical expertise in the field of low-cost building technology and appropriate technology, energy-efficient architecture. It also has an active consultancy cell serving Central India, stated the description on VNIT’s website.